My Sky Color

A forty something Dad, Husband, Engineer guy living in Western Oregon. Reflections on all things in life. A few technical things and whatever else comes along.

Thursday, December 22, 2005

Categorically Speaking
Blogs are an interesting expression. A favorite adventure in the blog world is to hit the "next blog >>" button and see what you find. Compartmentally speaking, blogs can be classified into a few types. So few that you don't have to take your shoes off to count them all. So let's see if DMP can do it? Do you agree?
1. Trying to sell something.
2. Moms bragging on the kids, their pregnancy, their activities.
3. Political commentary.
4. News commentary.
5. Teenie boppers.
6. Erotic exploits real or fictional.
7. Travel dialogs.
8. Blogs in another language so us english speakers don't know what the heck it says.
9. Creative writing.
10. What did I miss?
I am not sure where my blog fits? Maybe a little bit of them all (except 6). DMP

Tuesday, December 13, 2005

Mad Rocker
I like pioneer survival type stories. My last visit to Eastern Oregon found me reading a personal history of the patriach of the family I am friends with over there. He is in his eighties and wrote his history last year. Some of the stories and experiences are great!
One of the stories is of a child that got bit by a rattle snake. This occurred around the early 1900's. The story goes on to mention a "mad stone." Acting on this suggestion a neck breaking panic ensued to get one. A horse was ridden to death getting one from a far away town. The stone worked it's magic and the child was saved. So what is a mad stone?
Going to the source of most knowledge, the WWW. A mad stone is found in the stomach of a deer. Deer are ruminants - cud chewers. The stone with the most powerful results comes from a whitetail deer. The origins of this remedy come from the South.
The way this stone is used is by holding it against the bite. It will stick to the wound. When it falls off, boil the stone in whole milk to remove the poison and restore the rock's power. Continue this process repeatedly until the stone won't stick any longer. Historical records tout this as the best cure for snake bites. Some unrespecting folks wanted the local mad stone owner to use if for common mosquito bites. No way! The precious stone was saved for snake bites and nasty spider bites.
I need to get me one of these mad stones... I am not looking forward to pawing through stomach contents of deer. One has to wonder how it works... DMP

Wednesday, December 07, 2005

Contemplate This...
It is hard to be a wool producing goat in the winter. If as a goat you care about your appearance. Your fleece ends up with huge quantities of debris hanging on - straw, evergreen sprigs, tree limbs, cedar tree needles, your herd mates poo, and any number of other things. Dred locks are in, so maybe it isn't so bad.
The wind is blowing again and I haven't finished cleaning up the last storms' carnage. The neighbor wants me to take down about five scary trees around his house and shop. I may never catch up until spring.
Clay will be 6 on Friday. He's excited! And Christmas is coming! I have gray in my beard...
There has to be more to life than just work. Especially when you work at a corporate monster.
I got the master bathroom tile done last night. Yipee. I just have to seal it.
How many people acutally read this blog? Comment so I can take stock. DMP

Thursday, December 01, 2005


You Ever Have One of Those Days?
This is a prime example of a guy that wished he'd not gotten up that day. Yes, that is a bat. And yes, he is stuck to the fly strip.
Nature bloopers are fascinating. This occurred at night in Eastern Oregon. He was dead by the time he was noticed.
Just be glad your days are not like this. Look around, you have it pretty good. Be happy with where you are, who your with, and what you are doing. You made the choices that put you in this position in life. "Love the one(s) you're with." DMP